Ronghua Tutorial: How to Make Silk Pines & Moon Hairpin

The Silk Pine & Moon Hairpin captures a winter night frozen in time. The pine branches frame a soft, glowing full moon, evoking the stillness of cold air and moonlit forests. A calm, contemplative design meant to be worn like a small winter landscape, close to you.

Preparation: What You’ll Need

If you’ve purchased our Ronghua Toolkit, you already have everything required!
If not, prepare the following tools:

1. Bristle brush (Medium to soft hardness)
2. Flat iron (the one you use to straighten your hair)
3. Tweezers
4. At least 2 pairs of Scissors
5. wooden sticks / pencils / chopsticks
6. Hair spray or diluted white glue (1:1.15–1:1.2 ratio)
7. Big clips (around 15cm)
8. Twisting boards and wooden blocks (for even tension)
9. Anti-slip powder (optional but helpful)

Full Tutorial Video

Step 1. Align and Arrange the Silk Threads

Start by untying your silk threads. Locate the knot at one end of each bundle and cut it open carefully. This project uses 4 colours of silk to create 2 silk rows. 

Step 2. Group and Prepare the Threads

Each silk bundle consists of tiny strand-like structures — these are your individual strands. 

Align all strands neatly and tie them around a thin stick, keeping the ends even. Avoid uneven lengths — this ensures consistent texture later on.

Step 3. Make Silk Rows

Repeat the above process to create the silk row. Below is the finished silk row we made. For the yellow row, it is ungrouped, you only need to fix it onto the stick with a rubber band. You can make that row when we move on to the moon part in step 10. It is a bit different from the way we normally arrange silk rows, so be sure to watch our video tutorials when you start making the moon.

Step 4. Brush the Silk Rows

Fix one silk row onto your stand using big metal clips - if you don't have the wooden ronghua stand, that's totally fine! You can refer to our video about alternative solutions to the stand.

Hold the ends of the threads with one hand and brush gently but firmly from top to bottom. Don’t lift the brush midway. A light mist of water will prevent static. You can apply some pressure — silk threads are stronger than they look! Make sure to brush both the front and back sides until the row looks smooth and fluffy. 

Everyone uses a different brush and hand speed, so the time it takes to complete this step is also different. Taking my situation as a reference, it took me about 10 minutes to brush this silk row. When you feel the hair is soft and fluffy, you can stop and check. When there is no complete linear distinction between the threads, it's ready:) 

Step 5. Attach Copper Wires

When you feel that the silk is brushed enough, secure its tail with another big clip to your table or anything that can help stretch it taut. Take out one copper wire from the folded end of the row and straighten it. Twist the folded part into a spiral of about 3 cm. Clamp the silk threads between two copper wires and twist the opposite side tightly. Pull both wires taut and continue twisting until they merge into one. Remember, the twisting direction for the left and right end are opposite. 

The spacing should be as shown in step 1. 

If you have anti-slip powder, it will be much easier to dip your fingers in it and twist it. 

We highly recommend you watch the video tutorial for this step:)

Once done, remove the silk row from the stand and lay it flat.

Step 6. Cut the Silk Strips

Trim the row’s end neatly, then cut between each pair of copper wires to create even silk strips. 

When cutting, the scissors must be placed in the middle of two copper wires, otherwise the width of the silk strips will be inconsistent.

If threads stick to your scissors, clean them — it’s usually caused by static or residue. Cut quickly and cleanly for smooth edges. Don't touch the wire or it may get displaced.

Step 7. Center and Twist the Strips

Align the copper wire to the middle of each strip using a flat surface or wooden block.
Once centered, twist both hands in opposite directions to tighten.

Next, place the copper part between the twisting boards and continue twisting in the same direction. Stop when the wire feels firm — twisting too far may cause it to break. How do you know if it is tightened enough? If tightened properly, the copper wire should only faintly show. If the copper wire is very visible, it’s not tight enough.

Step 8. Shape the Strips

Now let’s shape the pointed tips. Rest the silk strip and your scissors lightly against a container, keeping the scissors slightly tilted. Rotate the silk strip as you trim, tapering the darker end into a clean pointed shape. Try to keep all strips as even in thickness as possible so the final piece looks cohesive.

Step 9. Make the Branches

Once all the silk strips are trimmed, we can begin assembling the pine branches. Align the bases of the silk strips and bind them together with black silk thread. Each pine branch only needs about 4–8 silk strips. Wrap the thread downward for about 2 cm, then tie off to finish. In total, assemble nine pine branches in different sizes.

Step 10. Prepare the Silk for the Moon

After completing the pine branches, pause and move on to the raw silk moon. 

Note that for the moon we use raw silk. It is quite different from how we normally do with silk thread, so be sure to watch our video tutorial:)

Open the raw silk—it may look a bit like a wig at first. Cut the raw silk apart, keeping in mind that raw silk is quite stiff and can damage scissors, so don’t use the same scissors you use for silk strips. Cut it again, as you won’t need that much material; half of this amount is enough to make about 6–7 moons.

Fold the raw silk in half and secure the center with a rubber band. Fix the rubber band onto a wooden stick, then secure the raw silk onto the stand. 

Lightly arrange the fibers so they don’t stick together, and divide the raw silk into very small sections—the smaller, the better.

Step 11. Flatten the Silk 

Use a flat iron to straighten the raw silk. Hold the iron slightly longer on curved or thicker areas. Compare straightened and unstraightened sections to check your progress. To speed things up, divide the raw silk into small bundles and straighten them thoroughly—there should be no bends left.

Here is the before & after of straightening:

Step 12. Secure and Cut the Silk

Next, use steel wire (about 20 cm long) to secure the raw silk, keeping about 4 cm between each wire. Larger moons will require more raw silk; for smaller ones, this amount is sufficient. 

Once all steel wires are attached, trim the bottom evenly and cut all the raw silk free.

Adjust the steel wire so it sits exactly at the center of the raw silk, then use pliers to twist it tightly. This step is crucial—if the wire isn’t tight enough, the moon may shed later. There should be no gap between the steel wire and the raw silk.

Step 13. Press the Silk into a Disk

Lightly spray a small amount of water where the silk meets the wire—just a little is enough.

Find the midpoint on both sides of the raw silk and press it into a small round disc. Heat the flat iron and press the silk firmly; you can apply some pressure. Continue pressing until there are no obvious gaps on either side.

Draw a 3 cm diameter circle on paper and cut it out. Use this as a guide to trim away excess raw silk, keeping the edges neat. 

Step 14. Fluff up the Moon

Spray a little water at the very center, then use tweezers to gently pinch the silk upward bit by bit. Work slowly, trimming and refining the shape until the silk ball becomes round and full.

Once done, wrap all the steel wires exposed with silk thread. It’s best to use double strands. At this stage, the moon is complete.

Step 15. Assemble the Branches

Now return to the pine branches. Cut off all the copper wires and assemble the branches in a staggered, natural arrangement—random combinations work best. 

Take a piece of aluminum wire, trim its tip at an angle, and use it to bind the pine branches together. Wrap extra thread at the joints so the transitions look natural. You’ll also need one branch with denser pine needles. In total, assemble four pine branches.

Use pliers to bend and shape the branches. Pine branches should look rugged and slightly twisted.

Assemble the shaped branches together, then cut off any excess copper wire.

Step 16. Attach the Piece to the Hairpin

Take out the hairpin base and attach the pine branches to it. Pull the silk thread tight while wrapping, adjusting as you go so the piece looks balanced from different angles. Attach the branch with the most needles as well.

Now attach the moon by placing it in the gaps between the pine branches. If you run out of thread, tie a knot at the end of the old thread to secure it, then fix a new thread just above it, pull tight, and continue wrapping.

To finish: After fully covering the copper wire, take a folded annealed copper wire and wrap thread in the opposite direction along it. Thread the silk through the folded wire, pull the wire out, and cut off the excess silk. Lightly burn off any frayed edges using the lowest flame.

Watch our video tutorial for this step:)

If you still have extra silk strips, you can optionally add one behind the moon to slightly cover the back. If not, feel free to skip this step.

Now it’s time to admire your finished piece ✨